Whether you are graduating high school, your first year of college or you’re saying goodbye to your college campus for good as a senior, these endings never get easier. College is especially strange in the sense that a short time ago you didn’t even know that any of these people existed, and only nine months later, they have become not only your best friends but your family.
I remember so clearly my last day of school last year. It was the last day of my freshman year here at UNH, and I was trying so hard not to let my friends see my tears. I was hugging them for longer than normal, because I knew that I wouldn’t be able to walk down the hall and hang out with them for hours on end like we did every single day. When we are all here at college, we build new communities and develop our own schedules and routines. It’s crazy to think that now after living with them being such huge parts of our lives, we just won’t see them for a while. I remember sitting on my bed waiting for my dad to pick me up. It was unmade just as it was on the first day I got there. I was crying at that moment the same way I was when my parents first dropped me off. I had just finished saying goodbye to my friends and my roommate, all of whom I had grown to love. I thought I was insane for being so scared and sad about coming here back in August before, because on that day in May all I could think was what the hell am I going to do without these people in my life? It all seemed so silly. I was terrified of coming here, leaving the place I had called home for the past 18 years. I wouldn’t in a million years think that I would be equally as sad on my last day as I was on my first.
The great thing was that I was only ending my first of four years here. It was only three months until August and then I would be reunited with my people again. I spent the summer working, and as soon as I got back I was so excited to be back with my girls. I soon found out that all of the fear and the doubt about college had returned. I was constantly thinking to myself, “Do they still like me?” and “What if they don’t want to be friends anymore?” This past year has proved to me that real friends will stick by you, and they will reciprocate the effort that you put into a friendship. I have started referring to UNH as home, even when I am sitting in the house that I was raised in. I am so lucky to have the people in my life that I have, and I don’t think I would have made it to this point without the friends that I have made here at UNH.
Now for seniors, you have spent the last four years of your life here. You may be thinking, “Now what?” You probably have the same feeling that I had last May and the same feeling that I have now amplified to 1,000,000. All of the people who you have learned to love are now starting their lives possibly in different states, starting big girl or big boy jobs and moving on from their years as a student. Lucky for you we live in 2024! We are able to call, text and communicate with one another at the snap of a finger. Although I am sure I can’t understand what it is like until I reach that point, I am sure that you will all do such amazing things with your futures.
The biggest thing that I can say to everyone, whether you are a freshman or a senior, is that it is better to be crying because you have had something so wonderful than to have never had it at all. I am so proud to be a Wildcat and to be a member of Her Campus. I look forward to seeing all returning students next fall, and I am so proud of every senior who has made it to this point.